


More Than This

by LadySansasDirewolf



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alpha Ben Solo, Alpha Kylo Ren, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Ben Solo is a Mess, Dissolution of Mating, Legal Drama, Multi, Non-Traditional Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Omega Rey (Star Wars), Soulmates, poor communication
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-11
Updated: 2019-07-01
Packaged: 2020-04-24 09:37:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,860
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19170601
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadySansasDirewolf/pseuds/LadySansasDirewolf
Summary: "Ben Solo?""Yes?"The woman slapped the documents into my hand so hard it stung."Consider yourself served!"In which Ben and Rey are soulmates who cannot seem to get on the same page.





	1. Summons

**Author's Note:**

> So, while I should be working on about a thousand other projects, this happened. . .
> 
> Ben Solo thinks he has the world on a string, except for one thing.
> 
> His missing soulmate. 
> 
> Little does he suspect, Rey isn't that far away. And hell is about to ride back into his life.

BEN:

There ought to be a law against serving a man legal papers when he's just won the most important case of his career. But then, why should I have expected anything different from Rey's attorney. My own mother.

No sooner had the case against my client been dismissed, than I heard my name.

"Ben Solo?"

As I was turning, a female hand slapped the documents into my hand. I looked up to see Rey's best friend, Rose Tico, glaring at me like I ran over her cat. Her eyes were narrow slits of pure fury and every inch of her five-foot nothing Alpha frame screamed at me. In response, I could feel my own inner Alpha rise to the challenge.

Eighty percent of the time, well, maybe sixty-five percent, my Alpha is content to let me run our lives. It just works easier that way. But there are sometimes when Kylo, my inner voice, demands I shut up and let him handle our brain. Rose Tico is one of those rare people both parts of my personality agree on - she's a fucking bitch. From the moment Rey introduced us, she's been on my ass, waiting for me to screw up with Rey. 

Once the papers were in my hand, the coward ran for the door with me right on her heels. No way was she getting away so easily. Just as her hand reached for the courtroom doors, I grabbed her upper arm and pulled her back against me. She struggled but, really? I'd make two and a half of her. There was no way I was losing this chance. Holding her so she had no choice but to respond, I hissed furiously.

"Where the hell is my fucking mate?"

********

Four months previous:

I met Rey at a Georgia Tech football game. She was there cheering for the Yellow Jackets while I drank heavily and woofed at every University of Georgia Bulldawg touchdown. In the fourth quarter, my roommate, Poe Dameron, saw a group of people he knew and pulled me along behind him to meet up with them. As we met on the corner of North Avenue and West Peachtree, my eyes fell on the quiet girl trying hard to hide behind the rest. She had thick chestnut hair pulled into a ponytail, and the most amazing hazel eyes I'd ever seen. Something make me seek her out, maybe fate, maybe the large amounts of alcohol I'd consumed. I don't know. All I knew was, I was mesmerized.

"Hi." I tried to stand still though I knew I was swaying. "My name's Ben."

She looked up and it felt like a rocket straight to my heart. She took my outstretched hand, and suddenly it all made sense.

We dropped hands immediately but it had already started. On each of our hands began an intricate tattoo, comprised of vines and swirls.

Mate marks.

Soul mates.

Without another word, I did the only possible with the condition I was in at the moment.

I passed out.

When I came to, Rey was holding my hand again, rubbing the side of her head in the same spot I'd just whacked against the sidewalk. That's how fast your life can change. Boom. One minute you're walking down the street after an excellent afternoon of football, enjoying being alive, and wham. Soul mated. But at least for once in my life Fate decided to be kind. Rey Niima was gorgeous. A graduate student at Georgia Tech in Industrial Management, she was interested in Process Engineering and also played on the women's soccer team. Originally from England, she had the most adorable accent, and before the sun arose the next morning, I knew I was in serious like with this girl. And to top everything off - Rey was an Omega. Who never spent a heat with an Alpha.

Just hearing that almost sent me into a full blown rut. 

We spent all day Sunday together, grocery shopping, watching football (American-style) and learning more about each other. Rey was a goddess. Beautiful, clever, funny, shy, and with a sense of melancholy she refused to share. Rey grew up an orphan, in and out of foster homes with various levels of abuse of all kinds. It was amazing she was actually sane considering what she'd seen and lived through and I only caught the glimpses she would let people know about. God alone knew the miseries she kept hidden from me and from herself. Kylo and I both were determined her life would never again know a shortage of food, or warmth, or love. We completed each other in vitally important ways, and by Sunday night we were talking about a spring wedding.

Monday morning, Rey woke up in heat.

******  
Present Day

Back at the office, I ran into my uncle Luke's office. As senior partner of the group, he was the attorney of record whenever one of us needed legal advice or counsel.

I slammed the papers down on his desk.

"She's trying to dissolve our fucking mating bond. How the fuck do you break a soul bond?"

I had to give my uncle credit. He never missed a beat.

"Hi Nephew, glad to see you too. How's things?"

I rolled my eyes. "I am not in the mood Luke. Rey has filed a petition to dissolve our mating. She wants to burn off her mark!"

He finally looked up at me, his cool blue eyes filled with questions.

"What really happened between you two, Ben? It's been what, three months since she ran out the door like a scalded cat? Rey is one of the most compassionate people I ever met. How did you manage to hurt her so badly she's stayed hidden from the world for three months?"

I ran my hand through my hair, signature move for 'please don't make me discuss this topic', but Luke kept pressing until I finally blew up.

"Okay, fine! You want to know? I was home waiting for Rey and the door bell rang. It was that bitch, Jessika wanted to get back together because her heat was nearing. I had just gotten out of the shower and all I had on was sweatpants. Before I knew what the hell was happening, Jess had her hands down my pants, rubbing all over me, and Rey came in the door. She didn't even let me explain, she just took one look at what was happening and ran out the door. Within minutes she had blocked me on all forms of media and shut off her phone. I've been trying to reach out to her ever since."

Luke regarded me over his fingertips, his lips pursed as he thought. "I take it this Jessika is an Omega was well?"

"Yeah, one I broke up with more than three years ago, when I left Snoke's firm. She's his goddaughter."

"Well, then we can assume this was a deliberate attempt by Snoke and his people to come between you and Rey. What would Snoke want to do that for?"

"I have no idea. All I know is I cannot lose Rey. I adore her. She's my soul mate. I want her to come home."

I hated my voice for breaking, but damn it, I want my mate. Everything had been grey and miserable since she left. 

"Luke," I managed to sob out, "I will do anything to make things right with Rey. And I need your help to make sure this mating does not get broken."

Smiling, my uncle leaned over his desk, closer to me. The evil smirk on his face make me slightly nauseous.

"Anything?"


	2. Judgement

BEN 

For once my uncle had a truly great plan in mind to bring my wayward mate home without openly refusing to hear her complaints. I know she has some, why the hell else did she run away? Some are probably even valid points, but did she ever mention any of this unhappiness first? No, just had fucking Rose Tico come pack everything and hand me a note saying she needed to think. 

Think? 

Think about what? 

How does running away from your soulmate lead to proper thinking? God knows I’ve been a fucking wreck since the day she left. But I did what a good soulmate was supposed to do and left her alone. Of course, her changing her cell number made that easier to do, and being blocked from the Georgia Tech Facebook site for the soccer team made sure I couldn’t even catch a glimpse of her face. I hired a private detective who saw her often on campus but could never follow her to a permanent home location. 

It appeared as though Rey had become a ghost. 

Now I know my own damn mother was hiding her. 

Every time I think I should mend relations with the people who contributed the DNA to create me, they do something like this and remind me that being a lone wolf isn’t such a bad thing. But really, how can a mother turn against her own son? Sure, not too long ago I called her a heartless bitch who’d sell her own kidney for a favorable outcome in court, but that was in the heat of battle. Once out of the courtroom, it had become easier to just ignore both Leia and Han. It was better than listening to their constant arguing back and forth. 

If ever two people needed to dissolve a union, it’s my fucking parents. 

But Luke, Luke was on my side this time. The importance of the mating bond is very important to my uncle, after all, it was a broken bond that ended up killing my grandparents, Luke’s mother and father. He spent hours poring over case laws and Supreme Court decisions to see if Rey had any leg to stand on with this ridiculous lawsuit. Meanwhile I decided to see what information I could find out about Rey and her reasons for this insanity.

I enlisted Poe to find out all he could about what was going on in Rey’s head. Since Poe’s on and off boyfriend was Rey’s best friend, I used some old blackmail I had on Dameron to question Finn Trooper until we knew where Rey was living, how she was and what she hoped to accomplish. The answers made me both smug and hurt. 

Poe managed to drag Finn back to our office under the pretense of signing some insurance papers, and with Armitage, Luke, Poe, and myself all bombarding him with questions it didn’t take long for the City of Atlanta fireman to crack like a egg. 

“Where is Rey now?” Luke started the questions. Those soft blue eyes and laid-back attitude always won over the hardest of nuts to crack. 

Finn looked terrified. Whether that terror was directed at me I wasn’t sure. Due to her horrible childhood, Rey has learned to be a true Alpha bitch when it's required, which for an Omega is saying something.

Finn wet his lips. You could see the two sides of his brain battling the pros and cons of any answer he might give, and deciding to go with the truth. “She’s living at the Organa-Solo compound in Buckhead.” 

Smart man, I won't kill him yet.

“Who decided to bring this lawsuit?” 

“That was all Rey." Finn glared at me with pure fury in his eyes. "She’s - I don’t know what happened that night, and she won’t talk about it to anyone but Leia and Rose, but she’s changed. Something is broken inside, and Rey is going overboard trying to balance her emotions. This past month I haven’t seen a day go by that she wasn’t in tears, throwing up, not eating, and she's been going for days without taking a shower. It’s getting bad.” 

Hearing of my mate’s ordeal pushed buttons inside that were already stuck in the open position and I found myself putting my first through the drywall several time. As well as throwing anything I could get my hands on. In my thoughts, Kylo was livid, demanding we go retrieve our mate. I confess the idea was sounding better each time Kylo brought it to the front of our hindbrain.

But there was no way that would go over well. 

I practically pounced on Finn. “What’s she been doing?” 

Continuing to glare at me he hissed in reply, “Crying, throwing up, and in general acting like her life is over. Were you not listening the first time asshole?” 

Wisely Poe steered me away from Finn and toward the couch. It was all I could do to not commit homicide. All that was stopping me was I wasn't sure who to kill. Yet.

Luke returned to questioning Finn. 

“What does Leia intend with this lawsuit?” 

“Rey knows it’s a slim chance, but she wants to make a clean start, to put the pain behind her and move on. She knows that with a living soulmate out there, she’ll never find another mate, and certainly not love but at this point, she is okay with that. The baby will be enough.” He then clapped his hand over his mouth realizing he'd let the proverbial cat of out the fucking bag. 

You could have heard a pin drop in the room. 

I stalked over to Finn, unable to keep Kylo and the rest of my Alpha bullshit from moving to front and center. I grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled up to my face, growling like a man possessed. 

“What fucking baby?” 

****** 

Four months ago: 

 

“Ben, I don’t feel good.” 

That was how Rey woke me to announce she was in heat. 

In her defense, the girl had only been through one since she hit puberty, and that at the age of sixteen. Now twenty-two, her body had had enough of the large doses of suppressants and scent blockers the college required all athletes to adhere to so as to prevent complicated moments during important games. Now, with me holding her tight, her Omega system was kicking into high gear, pumping out pheromones like a sorority mixer. Sandalwood, orange, lemongrass and something I couldn't identify all swirled around the bed like a fucking storm cloud, and I was immediately pulled into my soulmates' need.

Kylo kicked my Alpha brain into high gear, and suddenly the care, feeding, and satisfaction of my mate was more important than air. 

“Hang on baby, Alpha’s gonna make everything better.” 

For four days we fucked, ate, slept. Lather, rinse, repeat. I didn't know the Alpha body could contain so much fluid, and Rey was like an addict desperate for my cum. It was the most amazing three days of my life, and on the final night when, in the throes of passion Rey begged me to claim her, I was more than happy to oblige. Her biting me back was the icing on my life, and when she admitted she loved me, I was on cloud nine. She moved her things into my larger apartment, setup a joint checking account, and we went to the humane shelter every week looking for the perfect fur baby for our new family. 

Four weeks later, she ran away after watching that bitch Jessika try and give me a hand job. Damn whore. I had to burn those pants as well as throw out the couch she's run her hand over. I couldn't get the sour smell of her Omega out of our apartment. If I had thought it would helped I would have burned the place down, but realized that was just a tad drastic, and certainly won't endear me to my mate. 

I kept the sheets from her heat, sealed in an heirloom preservation bag. I can't sleep at night unless I take a few hits of her sweet fragrance. And I know she stole several of my sweatshirts, probably for the same reason, along with several bars of my favorite soap and a travel sized bottle of aftershave.

I think it is probably a safe bet that Rey is just as miserable right now as I am, but to get her to admit such a thing will require more force than I possess by myself.

But with Luke helping . . . 

****** 

BEN 

Luke managed to call in a few favors and got us a private hearing with Judge Alton Ackbar, known for his staunch conservative defense of mating laws and rights. I couldn't have picked a better judge if I'd paid for him myself. And with Luke's secret weapon up out sleeves, Leia Organa and Rey Niima will never know what hit them.

When we enter the judge's chambers, Rey won't look in my direction, but I state unabashedly at her beautiful face, now red and swollen though I can tell Leia has tried to cover up the worst of Rey's misery with make-up. But I can tell. It shows in every line of her amazing body. In looking at her, I can see the first glimmers of her pregnancy in the larger breasts that fill her sweater, and the no longer quite flatness of her belly. It's all I can do to not crow out my happiness. My mate is pregnant. It's what every Alpha dreams of when they help their Omega mate through a heat. This is our purpose, the reason for our unique chromosomes. I wonder if it is a boy or a girl? Will it have my ears (please God, no)? Am I ready for fatherhood?

As these and a thousand other questions fly across my thoughts, Ackbar comes in with a thick stack of paperwork, and two thick law books. Rey avoids looking at me, as if by pretending I'm not there she'll be fine. But I see the stagger in her shoulders as she tried to breathe in air containing my (currently) un-suppressed scent without sobbing, and she's starting to look a little green around the edges. Leia is watching me out of the corner of her eye. She can tell something is up. Our scents (Luke, Armitage and myself) are tainted with smugness. According to Luke, Leia has not a clue what we're about to spring on her and my mate. I should feel embarassed but I don't.

All's fair in love, and war, and right now I'm not really sure which side this whole shit show fall upon.

Ackbar clears his throat.

"Okay guys and girls, we should have Niima-Solo v Solo for dissolution of a mating bond, is that correct?"

Both Leia and Luke respond, "Yes your Honor."

Ackbar looks over his glasses at both Rey and then me. Then he puts the glasses on his desk and GLARES at us.

This is not going to go the way Rey thinks it will.

"There is nothing more honored and sacred among our communities than the sanctity of the mating bond. Add on top of that your soulmate status, and this entire discussion becomes an exercise in taking up the court's time and resources. Now, I've read both arguments and I will admit that you two have to be the most stubborn, uncommunicative couple I've ever had the sad opportunity to have in my court. This is nothing but a giant misunderstanding made worse by an emotionally distraught Omega and a typical A+ Alpha."

He stops talking to point at each of us with hard jabs of his fingers.

"You were both adult enough to mate. You were adult enough to conceive a child. Now you're both going to be adults and FIX THIS MESS. Do I make myself clear?"

Without waiting for our response, he slammed his gavel down on the small round oak coaster on his desk.

"My verdict is this. Mrs Niima-Solo will return to the family home at once. The two of you will learn to work as mates, even if I have to sentence you to be handcuffed together until that happens. Both of you will wear ankle monitors that will alert the police should you get more than 20 feet apart from each other. In all ways you shall act and live as a HAPPILY married couple. You will be required to check in with your assigned A/O Monitor and to attend therapy individually and as a couple. You will stay together for a period of no less than one year, and if at that time you still wish to revisit this horrible decision, we will talk them. Case dismissed."

And just like that it was over, and my mate ordered to return to our home. I steal a glance at Rey's face, watching her color drop lower and lower the more Ackbar growls across the desk. This was a possibility she hadn't considered, being made to work things out. I can see the wheels in her mind falling apart as her plans go down the drain, and I can't help smiling broadly.

Suddenly Rey raced to the corner, grabbing the judge's trashcan as she heaves out the contents of her stomach. Rather than going to hold her hair, as I wanted to with every fiber of my considerably tall and well built body, I wait to see what her side of the room is going to do. I want Rey to want me, like she did before Jessika shot everything apart. I want my mate back, I want my family back. Instead of calling to me, Leia rubs Rey's back, murmuring to her so low the rest of the room couldn't hear anything. I saw Rey nod her head, then gracefully rise from the floor to come stand before me.

It's the first time I've seen her in months, and she doesn't look well at all. She's lost weight, her hair is dull, her eyes are too bright, and the small bump of her abdomen hidden beneath her hands pushing Kylo to preen in Alpha bliss. We mated our Omega, and now is ours forever. Unless I fuck this up.

"Ben."

"Rey."

"Leia has offered to bring me home tomorrow morning. Is that acceptable?"

"I'll be home. What would you like for dinner tomorrow night?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Just us?"

"Rey, there was nothing between Jessika and I. She made a play thinking you were just another Omega, and she failed, or succeeded if her mission was to break us apart. I'm not sure which she was actually supposed to do. But it doesn't matter. I love you Rey, you are the one I want to spend my life with, the only mate in my heart."

Her eyes harden and she steps back out of my reach, my fingers twitching to pull her back where she belongs.

"Words are cheap Ben. The only way you will ever get back into my good graces is to become someone other than you currently are. I'll see you later."

As I pondered on her meaning, Luke slaps me on the shoulder.

"Well I did my part nephew. The rest is all on you."

Oh fuck me.

Luke was right. Ackbar sent her back to work out our differences. Now it was time for me to learn how to make her love me again.

No biggie, right?


	3. Game

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey  
> Part One

REY: 

 

Ben Solo is 100%, grade-A, premium misogynist Alpha asshole. 

On a good day. 

All my life, I've shied away from Alphas. My father was a loud, obnoxious drunk who said whatever popped into his head that would shut my mother down. He never physically hit her, but his words cut like surgical steel, and when she finally had the guts to walk away, he shot her and then himself. 

I was seven.

For the next ten years I was bounced from guardian to guardian in the system, never staying too long once my foster parents had enough of me. The only two things I ever had going for me were my brains and my natural athletic abilities. In school I played soccer and volleyball, all while maintaining a perfect grade point average. Education was my way out of this misery, and sports would provide the method. 

My senior year of high school, I presented as an Omega.

The foster system pulled me out of the unmarried Umberto Plutt's foster home and gave me to an Alpha/Alpha couple. Two months later I was signed to play soccer at the Georgia Institute of Technology. After graduation from high school, I worked and saved up money for a car to take to school. I bought a sweet little Mustang and for the first time since my parent's died I really thought my life was looking up. Then reality remembered she'd left me alone for a few years and it was time to remind me that Life Isn't Fair.

The night before I was to leave for school, my foster mother Jyn came in my room and tried to tell me that even with the high doses of suppressants and scent blockers that are required by college athletes, I needed to remember that as an Omega player, I was in the minority and she gave me the number of a martial arts instructor in Atlanta. She and Cassian would pay for me to learn to defend myself against possible assault by an Alpha who wasn't taking No as an answer.

Moving from the small bedroom community of Jakku Outpost to the major Southeastern city of Atlanta was a culture shock, but I made amazing friends in Rose Tico and her sometimes beau Finn Trooper, and Finn's roommate Poe Dameron. They would watch my matches, help me keep up with assignments when games took up away. Native Atlantan Rose had an enormous family on the north side of town, and I spent many holidays throughout my time at Tech at the Tico's sprawling compound. 

As an Industrial Management major, I decided to specialize in Process Engineering. I've always loved how things work and why they work like they do. Starting my sophomore year I began the work study program, which gave me valuable experience but extended my college career an entire additional year. It was hard, but by the fall of my fifth year, with additional credits already contributing toward my Masters degree, I finally felt stable enough to venture out to the annual football game between Tech and rivals the University of Georgia Bulldogs. As a fellow athlete, I knew many of the football players and I wrangled Finn, Rose, and I some excellent seats.

When we left at the end of the third quarter to slid across the expressway to the Varsity and enjoy some greasy onion rings and discuss our upcoming Christmas holiday plans, we noticed Poe headed in our direction. With him was someone I didn't know save by virtue of the fact I knew he and Poe worked together and had known each other since childhood. 

Ben Solo.

Okay, first? The man is built like sin on legs. Tall, dark, and handsome in a brooding, Prince of Denmark kind of way that makes you want to fall into his deep brown eyes. And his scent? Oh. My. God. Smokey and rich, and chocolate and amber and warm winter nights in front of a fire on a bear skin rug reading sonnets delicious. An Alpha's Alpha if ever one existed.

And I knew, I was in serious trouble.

Since I presented in high school I'd managed to keep my designation quiet between our friends, but at the sign of Ben my stupid Omega Kira jumped up and down in delirious excitement over the prospect of climbing him like the mountain of a man he is and making him our Alpha. Kira is an idiot.

He was drunk off his ass, swaying like a pine tree in a summer storm, holding out his hand to meet me.

"Hi. I'm Ben."

When I our hands touched, I will never forget that electric wave the ran through my arm up into my body and into my brain as the damn soul mate marking began to form.

No,

No this can't happen, not NOW!!

I have an interview for a position in Seattle the first week of January. I cannot have a soulmate in Atlanta! I'm leaving here in less than four months, a fully accredited Process Manager at Boeing Aerospace.

I look up hoping he'd as horrified as I am, and the fucker passes out in the middle of North Avenue! Worse, my head now feels the impact in the same spot as he crashes into the damn sidewall.

The four of us (Finn, Rose, Poe and myself) manage to get him out of the line of pedestrians and leaning against the building. My head is screaming from our shared pain and I am not amused at this moment at all. While he's still out cold, we discuss this uncomfortable twist of fate.

Poe caught my arm. "Shit Rey, I've never actually seen soul marks form before. Are you all right?"

I snorted angrily. "Of course I'm not all right! I just shook hands with the wanker and now I'm stuck with an Alpha for the rest of my life? What the hell am I going to do? They'll kick me off the team, I'll lose my interview with Boeing, everything will have to be 'negotiated with my Alpha' to make sure his 'rights' are protected. What about my rights? What about my dreams? I don't want a soulmate, I want a life I choose."

"Rey," Rose rubbed my back, "it's okay. We understand. How's your head?"

"Blindingly painful."

"Honey, I know this isn't perfect, but why don't we all go to the boys' apartment and you guys can talk with all of us there to keep you safe."

"Oh shit!?"

"What?"

"I don't have anymore of the Electra level suppressants from the school. Since I'm not going to be playing full time in the spring, the coach is starting to wean me down to Dione strength. One of the possible side effects could be a brief heat."

Finn took my hand. "Then we definitely won't leave you alone, unless you tell us to go."

I rolled my eyes. "Like that's going to happen."

I grabbed Ben's hand again to check his pulse and noticed he was beginning to come around. He reeked of stale alcohol and a sickening feeling of deja vu crawled all over me. Memories of another drunk Alpha.

At the apartment we talked, he sobered up and when the sun was beginning to climb into the November sky, I allowed him to drive me home. By the time we got into my Midtown loft, the itch had already started around my glands. We collapsed, fully clothed onto my bed, sleep knocking us both out. I woke up about three hours later, and the itch was a full burning roar, and the cramps of my abdomen reminded me of the horrible morning I'd presented as an Omega. 

Ben was asleep with his head on my shoulder, blowing gently all morning on my mating gland, bringing the possibility of a brief heat into a full blown please-just-kill-me-now heat.

Fucking asshole. He swears he didn't do it on purpose but for some reason I don't like to examine too closely I choose to believe he's lying. It makes the pain of what happened later easier to bear.

I have to admit, as long as I'm being honest with myself, it was the most amazing sex of my life. The man is definitely proportional, and he knows how to make use of what the Lord gave him, in oh so many ways. Kira, little Omega slut, was in sex heaven, begging Ben to mark us as his own, as Me, Rey, floated on a sex fueled cloud of endorphins, bliss-ed out from the soothing release of uncountable orgasms. When his teeth dug in and marked me, instinct drove me to do the same to him. 

The next morning my heat began to dissipate, and I began to deal with consequences of mating with a stranger.

The first week or so was the 'honeymoon/getting to know each other' phase. He learned about all the skeletons in my closet and he unleashed all of him onto me. It was a lot, Ben had done some bad things in his early 20s, including working for the largest enemy his family had, Snoke and Palpatine, attorneys at law. After five years he'd grown tired of the constant comparison to his grandfather, a brilliant prosecutor who's suffered a mental breakdown when his wife died in childbirth, and had gone to work with his uncle, Luke. But I was no angel, that's for sure. I did a lot of things to survive in the foster system, not all of them I could be proud of except for one - I never had to lay on my back for anyone to get what I needed. I took care of me. End of story. But when Ben asked me to move into his penthouse apartment, Kira opened my mouth for me and said yes like the weak brained wench she could be.

I met his mother and father, Leia Organa and Han Solo, and Leia threw herself into a party to announce our mating. When she mentioned two weeks, I opened my mouth and interrupted.

"I'm sorry, but that's the weekend I fly to Seattle for my orientation with Boeing."

You could literally hear the seconds dragging through the air.

Ben cleared his throat. "Surely you aren't going to keep that interview, sweetheart? Lockheed Martin is right up the expressway in Marietta, and both Leia and Han know people who could get you in for an interview."

"I chose Boeing because the majority of their work is civilian. Lockheed is military. I can't work for the military. I'm not an American citizen."

His eyes hardened every so slightly, and I sat back to see what his response was going to be.

"The paperwork can be arranged in a matter of days, Rey."

"Can we talk about this later, Ben?" I really had no desire to have this argument with his parents watching us back and forth like a form of tennis.

"Of course, sweetheart."

I could hear the thick layer of sarcasm.

We fought for days, him determined to keep me in Atlanta, and me split right down the middle. Kira voted to stay with our Alpha, but Rey wanted to go to the interview, and I was in control of the legs. Kira made one final appeal by reminding me that we were falling in love with our Alpha, and our scent was changing, as was his. A small kernel of worry planted itself in the back of my mind and refused to be silent. 

What if. . .

I made my plans in secret, talking with Rose during the day while Ben was at work. I would fly out Friday morning as soon as Ben left for work, and I would be back Monday before dinner. Unless he flew behind me to Seattle and tried to drag me back. In which case all bets were off. My own weapon at this point was my growing love for him, but I knew that if I pushed him too far, or if he pushed me, the resulting explosion would cause a monumental fallout.

We were clicking, slowly, but things were growing clearer. The little voice inside me that constantly whispered I wasn't worthy, I wasn't enough began to quiet and for the first time in quite a while, I smiled more than I frowned. To appease myself, I purchased a home pregnancy test for Omegas and waited for the results. I wasn't terribly surprised when It come back positive. All the way home from campus all I could think about was Ben and whether or not he would be happy. We were still young, and I had to get a job and soon. The rent doesn't pay itself. While still at the lab, I had called the Omega Center for Reproductive Health at Emory University Hospital and made an appointment with an OB/Gyn, for after I returned from Seattle.

Reaching Ben's apartment, I heard voices in our living room. Opening the door the first thing I saw was this girl. This strange girl with her hands DOWN BEN"S PANTS and he was just standing there, letting her.

Kira finally shut the fuck up and let Rey take the reins. I turned and ran like a scalded dog.


	4. Equality

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rey  
> Part Two

I ran straight to Rose's apartment.

I then spent the next three days puking, crying, and swearing to never see Ben Solo again if it was the last thing I did.

And I flew to Seattle.

The orientation went well until the third day. I should have known Rose would cave. There was no way she could survive Ben, and Poe, wearing her down.

The HR lady was very kind.

"You Alpha's attorney has contacted us Ms Niima. He has a few things he'd like written into your work contract and I wanted to see if you had any thing you'd like to add."

I swallowed hard. Fuck you Ben Solo.

"This is a very recent development Ms. Fisher. I'm not sure how important Mr. Solo's requests are, but I assure you his opinions are his own."

"Rey, you know we have to legally bring him into negotiations. And he's not terribly demanding. His attorney, a Mr. Dameron is in the next room waiting to speak with you."

"Oh I'd love to speak to him as well!!"

It turns out Poe Dameron was 'representing' my Alpha and by extension me. And guess what my mate wanted written into my contract?  
1 - I telecommute five out of every six weeks.  
2 - I fly First Class to Seattle the sixth week.  
3 - They provide 'accommodations' for Ben to accompany me, because mated pairs only have one set of rights.  
And last but certainly not least:  
4 - Five heat/rut leaves A YEAR!

Standing up I responded with a few choice actions of my own:  
1 - I thanked Ms. Fisher for her attention to my 'issues'  
2 - I smacked the living shit out of Poe Dameron and then  
3 - Turned on my heel, took a cab to the airport and disappeared for a week.

I flew from Seattle to Dallas, where I watched the sun set over an oil well as left the airport rental car lot headed east toward Atlanta. I turned off my cell phone and just let myself think over all the changes I was going through. I owed my Ethics professor my last project and once I dropped off this car at the Atlanta Airport, I had nowhere to go except back to Rose, and I knew Ben would have someone watching her place for any sign of me. 

I needed some place safe, some place I could lick my wounds and figure out what was going on with Ben and myself. Poe claimed Ben was setup by his old boss, determined to drive us apart. That he's in bad shape since I left, unable to sleep, drinking way too much, falling apart at the seams. I understand, I feel the same, but given the shit storm of my life how can I trust someone who's still a stranger? Who looks at me like I'm in need of a hero when what I want most is a friend? Who is Rey Niima and what does she want out of her life?

I rented a hotel room near Shreveport, and sobbed myself into a restless sleep.

I awoke the next morning to a banging on the hotel room door. Assuming it was the maid service, imagine my complete surprise to find Leia Oegana and Han Solo, Ben's parents.

"How the hell did you find me?"

Leia took of her sunglasses and fixed those eyes, Ben's eyes, on me. "Oh honey, I've had you followed since you left Seattle. How are you?"

I blinked.

"I'm fine. Why are you following me?"

"Because our son is an asshole, and you need to make him listen to you. We're here to help you do just that."

Apparently Ben poured out his heart and soul to his parents over a very drunken Facetime session. 

They knew I was Ben's mate. They knew I was Ben's soulmate.

And most of all, they knew I was pregnant, and very alone. That's when I burst into tears and cried in their arms, filling them in on my life and the roller coaster ride that kept me from trusting, and the ways that Ben undermined my decisions and made me feel invisible. They listened to every word, every complaint, and never once defended his actions. Only listened. And when I was cried out, Leia told me what we were going to do.

I was going to live with them in their house in Buckhead. Ben never came to the house, preferring to meet on 'neutral ground'. Han had already arranged an interview for me at Lockheed Martin up in Marietta with his old co-pilot from his military days, Charles Bacca. Mr. Bacca ran the design shop for engine development, a program that sells to the military but also to commercial markets. Thus my citizenship and anti-military views were negotiable. And best of all - 'Chewie' was Ben's godfather, or at least one of them, and he couldn't give a shit what Ben wanted. He'd treat me fair because I deserved it, Alpha be damned. But we still needed a way to get my bull headed A++ Alpha to shut up, sit down, and remember I'm a person first. I'm brilliant and I deserve a chance to use this fancy degree I just earned.

So we decided to file suit to dissolve our mating.

Now, I don't really want to leave Ben. I love him, I do. But one can only be smothered for so long before snapping, and I had already pushed well past that point. Plus I knew Ben's Uncle Luke knew entirely too many judges to find a fair hearing in Atlanta. The good ol' boy network is alive and well in the Deep South, believe me. No, the goal wasn't to win, the goal was to teach Ben Solo a lesson he couldn't forget.

The morning after Judge Akbar's ruling, myself, Leia, Finn, and Rose all arrived at Ben's apartment around nine. The plan was to clear out the second bedroom that was currently storage, enough for the small twin bed we were bringing from IKEA. Finn was going to install a deadbolt and chain on the inside of the door to keep me safe as I slept. If Ben wanted to be an asshole, I'd let him rant all he wanted, but I wasn't going to listen, and I wasn't going to play. Leia made it perfectly clear that Ben was stubborn to a fault, and getting him to admit he was in the wrong would be a huge step toward releasing that smothering Alpha bullshit that made me want to stab him in the eyeballs.

Okay, maybe pregnancy hormones are a real thing. 

Anyway, Ben opened the door with a smirk that rapidly disappeared when he noticed who I'd brought with me. The resting asshole face he did so well became an active growl when he saw us setting up the storage room as a bedroom. The growl became snark when Finn installed the deadbolt.

"Oh, what? You're scared of me? I've never hurt you Rey, never once. What the fuck is this lock all about?"

"We have a lot to discuss and I'm pregnant. I need to have a way to get rest even if you're uptight and demanding we continue the conversation. You can't chase me from room to room demanding I argue with you."

Storm clouds could learn how to menace from the face of my soulmate.

He stomped off to the kitchen, and all I could hear was pans banging around. He was frustrated, he didn't know what was upsetting me and I wasn't going to spoon feed it to him. In a lot of way, Ben could be a child. Leia and Han admitted that to me during that visit in Shreveport. For a brilliant lawyer, his interpersonal skills left a lot to be desired. I could feel his bluster through the mating bond. He was angry, wondering why I was reluctant to come back to him, to his bed. He was hurt that I wouldn't accept his explanation of what happened and just let it die in the past. He was nervous that I'd run away again, without letting him try to make things between us better. He was desperate for me to love him as fully as he loves me. And he's excited to become a father, a family.

That's the moment I decided to give Ben Solo a fighting chance. 

All I've wanted since I met Rose and her family was a family of my own, big and loud and filled with love for one another. I'd been around Leia and Han long enough to know why Ben was insecure and blustery. They made him that way. So I came out of my room and walked into the kitchen, a scared, hungry, wounded human being, and looking at Ben's face was like looking in a mirror. He was just as scared and wounded as me. He was petrified I would leave him again, and I was equally convinced he would leave me first, and neither of us could see our actions were making our feelings a self-fulfilling prophesy.

"Hi." His voice was carefully neutral. "I made breakfast for dinner. I know it's one of your favorites. I even went to Whole Foods and got that turkey bacon you love so much and some scones."

"Thank you, Ben. That's very sweet of you."

He pulled the chair out for me, and brought my plate. 

"Tea?"

"No, milk please Ben."

"Okay."

He sat down and we began to eat in silence. After a moment, he put his fork down, and wiped his mouth. Okay, here we go.

"Rey, I know you're angry at me, but can we please drop the silent treatment? I already don't know how to start a conversation with you, and this silence is daunting."

"I'm sorry Ben. I'm a little tired, and a lot hungry. What would you like to talk about first?"

"The baby?"

"Doctor says everything is looking fine. I haven't asked to find out the sex. I want to be surprised."

"What can I do to help?"

"Well, we need to think about where we live. Should we stay here in the high-rise or is it time to look for a house or cottage with a yard? And we need a sensible family car. I know you love your Alpha-mobile," I winked at him which brought a smile to his gloomy face, "but I need something with ease of getting a car seat in and out."

"All right, we can go looking when you feel up to it. But that brings me to the next tough subject."

I raised one eyebrow at him. "What would that be?"

"Boeing."

"Ben.."

"No, listen to me Rey. If you really want to move to Seattle, then I'll follow you. I can take the Washington state bar once the resident requirement is fulfilled, and you can support us while I go back to school in preparation. I can take care of the Sprout while you go back to work."

He took me hand, and the earnestness in his eyes lit a fire from my toes to the back of my neck.

My Alpha.

Damn he can be so stinking sexy. . .

Smiling, I let my fingertips run along his jawline. "I'll make you a promise. Whether I work for Boeing, or Lockheed Martin, you can still be a house husband if you want."

"So you'll marry me?" 

Damn he was quick to pounce on my words, even though I'd only meant it in terms of the common use. 

"One day. When we both feel it's time. But I'm getting tired."

Immediately he whisked the dishes into the sink, and swept me into his arms.

"Ben, put me down."

"No ma'am. I'm going to help you get a bath and get ready for bed. If you won't sleep in the bed with me, then at least let me help you. Please?"

I narrowed my eyes, suddenly suspicious of his motives. I pulled myself along the bond to see if I could catch his motivation. He tried to hide it behind beach scenes and island scenes, but in a weak moment he zig'd and I zag'd.

Ben Solo was an insecure mess, and completely, hopelessly, and irreparably in love with me, and waiting for me to break his heart again.

Damn him.


	5. Therapy

BEN:

The court set us up with Dr. Annette Holdo, AO therapist dealing with sudden mating issues, such as threatening to leave one's mate to move cross country to Seattle. Yeah, I'm still sore about that one, even though Rey took the job with my Uncle Chewie up at Lockheed. When I think about her leaving, I have panic attacks and have passed out from hyperventilating more than once. Dr. Holdo assures me that is normal for my Alpha, as Kylo's greatest fear is not providing properly for our Omega, and moving cross the entire country for a job just about emasculated both sides of me. Thankfully, the deal from Lockheed was everything Rey deserved, and she took to her new position with a vengeance. There were days when we were both dragging home at nine at night or later.

Dr. Holdo put her foot down and put up on schedules. During the week we had to be home before seven, so we could eat dinner together and talk about our work and what we did each day. There were days where 'Fine' was the one word I hated more in the world than anything. 'Fine' was Rey's way of saying 'Don't push this'. I knew she'd had a miserable childhood, we'd talked about it some, but as she opened up more and more in therapy I realized that miserable was an understatement. 

It was a miracle Rey was alive. Especially when you took her Omega status into consideration as well. But, Rey was no shy flower, that's for sure. She's a hellion, 

For two months she stayed in the spare bedroom, but only twice did she lock me out because I was out of control. The first time was over her refusal to let me attend her baby doctor appointments. That fight had been one for the ages, resulting in the Leia coming over and mediating when common sense apparently left both of us and went on a field trip to another planet where Rey actually listened to me. The second fight was stupid, and I deserved to be shut out. 

Dr. Holdo said that was the first time I apologized to Rey in therapy. Maybe this would work out.

I hate admitting it, but I love Rey with every cell of my body, and if it means changing to be with her, then I will do what I have to do to make this work. I want this to work, for our family.

But it all became real the moment I heard our child's heartbeat. 

That was the night she came back to our bedroom. It wasn't perfect, she slept on the extreme far edge of the bed and jumped up every time I tried to move, but it was a step. So I took one of my own. I enrolled in graduate school, working on my masters in Archaeology. While my original bachelor's degree was in Business Management, my dad and I shared a fondness for ancient civilizations. I decided I wanted to be more flexible in my time demands. Rey's pregnancy wasn't smooth, and it wasn't fair to the firm, or my uncle, for me to maintain divided loyalties. The day I left, Snoke sent a stripper, who our front desk receptionist threw out on her ear. At least giving up law meant Snoke had no more power over my life. 

As Rey headed into her seventh month of pregnancy, I decided I wanted to tie her to me in all ways possible. I wanted to marry her, and my parents were behind it completely. They love Rey, probably more than they love me, but that's okay. Rey deserves a big family, and because of who I am, they are a highly dysfunction group but somehow she manages to bring us all together. I find myself smiling more than I ever did before and in a huge testament to Kylo's contentment with our Omega, I even helped Rose get her dream job with NASA. The light in Rey's eyes when Rose and I hugged was the best feeling I've ever known, and that night, for the first time, she confessed that she love me. Really loved me.

I never thought a seven months pregnant woman would be so sexy, but damn if Rey wasn't a fucking goddess. We had to be careful as she wasn't as nimble, but as we lay together waiting for my knot to deflate, I could feel her contentment like a safety blanket wrapping up both in the feeling of completeness. 

This was all I needed, and wanted, just this.

********

REY

I feel like my life has taken a strange twist, like a Dickens novel, and I keep waiting for the other shoe to fall. I'm not the one who's supposed to have the fairy tale come true, and I knew, knew that something would happen. 

It was the fourth of July weekend, and Ben was in the shower. We were to head to his parents' lake house to watch fireworks over the water. As I debated on what to wear I heard Ben's phone ring. Noticing it was his uncle, I answered for him. The doorbell rang at that moment.

"Ben's in the shower, Luke. This is Rey."

"Rey," his voice was strange. "Rey, get Ben. It's important."

"He's in the shower, why? What's wrong?"

"One of his old cases got overthrown. The man is on the streets and looking for Ben."

At that moment our front door blew in, and everything moved in slow motion. Ben raced in from the bedroom, a gun flashed once, twice, and then I remember nothing until waking up in the hospital. When I opened my eyes the first thing I saw was Leia and Han. Both were wearing black and I knew he was gone.

My Ben.

The trauma threatened to push me into early labor, so I was ordered to bed for the remainder of my pregnancy. Left to cling alone to a pillow wearing Ben's shirt, I felt my heart shatter into tiny pieces over and over again. His parents tried to help but they only served as a reminder of the family I'd had and lost. They were sweet, but they weren't Ben. However they were there that summer morning when I went into labor, sobbing hysterically because he wasn't there. He was supposed to be with me, and I was alone.

Benjamin Organa Niima-Solo made his debut in the early hours of the morning, head full of black hair like Ben, hazel eyes like my own. A combination of our ears and nose. A week later we left the hospital and Leia took me to the cemetery to see Ben's headstone. I cried for hours on the sun warmed ground, but eventually there was nothing left. It was time to let the past die, as much as I could considering there was still a trial for the animal who shot Ben and I in our apartment. 

We drove to the house in Buckhead, where our friends were waiting to welcome Bennie and me after our emotional afternoon. It was sweet to see everyone but the fragile silence was too loud and I begged off early and went to bed.

I miss him so much.

******

LUKE

I knew when Ben gave up his law practice that Snoke might find someway to punish my nephew for finally moving beyond his talons. How my father ever got mixed up with him and Bernie Palpatine I will never understand, but I was proud that Ben chose love over money, reversing Anakin's horrible decision that had cost my mother her life. While Armitage and Poe fended inquiry after inquiry, nothing was amiss until Snoke found the one questionable case in the thousands Ben was involved with: Donald Mitaka.

A petty drug lord from Atlanta's West Side, he was a foil for one of Snoke's operations that ended up going bad. Mitaka took the fall but the court case was a narrow victory. With Ben giving up his practice, Snoke's attorney, Mitchell Canady filed a motion for a new trial with his client free on bond while the case was pending. Somehow the paperwork got caught in the system, and Mitaka walked out of the Atlanta holding facility, picked up a gun from one of Snoke's associates, and killed Ben and almost killed Rey and the baby. Only Ben throwing his body in front of Rey kept her from the abdominal shot that would have killed them both.

Ben fought hard, the surgeon's were amazed at his tenacity, but his wounds were too severe.

A week after the funeral, I was visited by my sister, along with two FBI agents. Turned out the FBI was investigating Snoke's organization for multiple reasons, and they wanted to share information. Since Armitage also worked at Snoke and Palpatine with Ben, we decided to join forces, for Ben's memory.

The road from investigation to prosecution can take years, and I watched Rey slowly rebuild what was left of her heart and become a wonderful mother to little Bennie. Each time I visited my own heart shattered a little more at what these two had been through. It was at Bennie's third birthday that we received the phone call that the warrants had been served and Snoke, along with his associates, were going to be held without possibility of parole at a maximum-security prison far away from Atlanta. The day it was all over was the first time I saw Rey truly smile since all began, four and a hlaf years ago.

I knew the two FBI agents who'd been so instrumental in this case were coming by as well. OB Kenobi and his partner Jon Quinn, were honorary godparents to Bennie and the two men were extremely protective of Rey and her privacy through this entire process, not as mere Alphas but as friends as well. They'd seen Rey fall apart just as I had, they knew the prices paid to remove Snoke and his influence from the streets but all of us were still wondering if the cost was worth the pain.

Rey was standing in the kitchen when three men walked in, OB and Jon, with the third man in a hoodie with his face mostly hidden. She turned to welcome the FBI agents and faltered. Her nose quivered and tears filled her eyes as her body shook with repressed emotions. The hooded man stepped forward, pulling down his hood.

"Hi Sweetheart."

Rey took one look at Ben's scarred face and promptly fainted.


	6. Trust

BEN / KYLO

In retrospective, I shouldn't have let Kenobi and Quinn convince me Rey could handle the shock of seeing her supposed dead husband. Between the knife scar my face acquired along the way, I'd also grown a goatee and mustache as part of my new identify as Kylo Ren. My Alpha alter-ego now my legal name as Ben Solo was died from gunshots wounds.

While the agents tried to help me move Rey to the sofa, I came face to face with the one person I didn't know, the only person I was truly scared to meet.

Bennie. My son.

"What's wrong with my Mommy?" His wide hazel eyes were exactly the same as Rey, but that thick unruly mop of black hair was all my own. I could see him trying to reason out who I was, why Grandma Leia was crying, and why his mother was currently shaking and becoming angrier by the moment. Time for a little diversion on my part.

"Mommy will be fine, Bennie. She's just a little surprised to see me." I knelt down to my son's eye level. With my goatee and mustache, it was hard to mesh my current face with the zillions of photos Leia and Han kept strewn across their walls. "I'm your daddy, and I've very glad to meet you."

He frowned at me. "No you aren't. My daddy is in heaven, not here."

"Well, Daddy hasn't been in heaven. I've been working to put the bad people who hurt your mommy and me away for a very long time. I worked with Agents Kenobi and Quinn as a special undercover agent to make sure no one can ever hurt our family again. But it meant I had to miss a lot of time with you, and I hate that part. I've missed you and Mommy very much."

"Mommy cries every night, though she thinks I can't hear her. She told me you were her one true love."

"She's right. I never loved anyone until I met her. Now, Bennie. I'm going to need your help."

"Why?"

"Because when Mommy wakes up, you and I both know she's going to want to run away. I need you to keep her from shutting me out altogether, okay? Between the two of us, we can hopefully convince your mother of how very sorry I am that I made her sad."

Bennie looked at me with one eyebrow cocked. "Daddy, do you even know how stubborn she can be? She might sock you in the jaw."

I smiled and pulled my son in for a bear hug. As his arms slid around my shoulders, I could feel the tears running down my cheeks.

He was very right. She might punch me, she might scream at me, she might throw me out and demand I cease any further contact.

I didn't expect her to come off the sofa like an avenging angel, grab our son by the hand, and march herself out to the guest cottage without speaking a word to me, my parents, or any of her friends. Turning around I looked at Kenobi and ran my hands through my hair and across my face, rubbing the edges of the knife scar for comfort.

"Well that sucked." My mother always did know how to turn a phrase.

*******

LEIA

I drew the short straw so I headed to the guest house to see if I could get my daughter in law to speak to me. I wasn't as optimistic as the others, because as soon as Rey learned we had known Ben was alive, she would take her things and leave. Neither Ben nor I wanted to see that happen, so I was sent in as Damage Control.

I knocked on the door, which was promptly opened by my grandson.

"She's not really ready to talk with anyone Grandma Leia."

"I know Bennie, but this is one problem you mother cannot run away from. Spying Rey in the kitche, I pressed a kiss to Bennie and sent him to play. "Rey," I spoke as one would to a wounded animal that could turn at any moment. "I know it hurts. Five years is a long time to be on your own, thinking your soul mate dead, raising Bennie all alone, and you've done a wonderful job of keeping all the plates spinning when a lesser woman would have thrown in the towel. This is weird, this is different. But Rey, he's still Ben.."

"No, he isn't!" She turned on me like wounded honey badger, all fangs and a need to lash out, and Rey knew all the words to say to wound me deep. "I don't know who that man is, but the Ben Solo who was my soulmate was killed in our apartment five years ago. My Ben would never have kept away from us for five years, especially knowing my abandonment issues. My Ben is dead. That man is a stranger."

Taking Bennie's hand, Rey grabbed her keys and pushed past me and out to her SUV. As she pulled down the driveway, Ben came racing out of the house, screaming her name and waving his hands to try and catch her.

"Well thanks Leia. Now I really am back to square one."

"She'll be back. Bennie has camp in the morning, and that takes precedence over her feelings. But she's angry, and worse, due for her next heat."

I could see the blood drain out of my son's face. His fists were closed so tightly I was amazed they didn't explode from the pressure. The nerve under his left eye twitched as the words spit themselves out, the torment in his voice pulled the strings of my heart.

"Who has she been with these past five years?"

"The first two she managed to skip her heats altogether due to stress and nursing. The past two have been alone, locked away at the Blue Ridge cabin while Bennie stayed either with us or with Finn and Poe Dameron. There has been no other Alpha or Beta since your death. All Rey does is work and take care of Bennie."

The first faint crack of hope dawned in Ben's face. But this was going to be the hardest job of his life, and I hoped for all our sake's he could get a measure of control. While Rey is an Omega, she's had to be Alpha and Omega these past few years, and it's made her harder than she was before. This operation was going to be every bit as complex as the one Ben just completed. I only hope he's learned how to think on his feet, because when you go toe to toe with an angry lioness, it always pays to know which way the wind is blowing.

 

******

BEN

I learned from Uncle Chewie that Rey had already put in for her heat leave, and was planning to head to my parents' cabin in two days. The only concession I'd had from my mate was her allowing Leia to supervise visits with Bennie. My son is amazing, and I cannot stress how proud I am of Rey for the stellar job she's done raising him. While she still won't answer any of my text messages or voicemails, I continue to leave them for her as if our relationship were on solid ground and our nights spent together instead of opposite sides of the fence. While I am frustrated I have hope Rey was eventually come around out of her own curiosity. 

According to our son, Rey is dying to know what happened that morning five years ago, and where I've been and what I've been doing, but she refuses to bend first. Typical Rey. 

Luckily I happen to have a strong ally in Bennie. Our son has confided all his mother's darkest secrets; how she's never dated anyone (even though apparently every single Alpha in the city has asked her out at least once); how every year on the anniversary of our meeting she spends the day alone at the cemetery; and how the mention of my name can make her weep every time. With the knowledge of her secrets, and blessed with a car full of groceries and several dozen bouquets of lavender roses (Rey's favorite) I make my move.

Following her out of Atlanta, I use every trick I learned during the undercover ops with the FBI and Homeland Security to avoid Rey spotting me too early. I didn't stop and wait for her until north of Canton. knowing the flow of traffic on a Monday morning headed out of Atlanta would be light enough to cause suspicion. Besides I could drive to our family's cabin with my eyes closed at this point in my life. No, I wanted Rey to arrive ahead of me, so that when I came in the door, she would be just at that panting needy stage of her heat that I loved. I needed to overwhelm her senses, remind her of our soulmate bond and the forces that brought us together.

I needed to be. . . 

Romantic.


	7. Confrontation

REY

I love Leia and Han's cabin in Blue Ridge, if you can call a six bedroom chalet a 'cabin'. The kitchen is bigger than the entire guest house where Bennie and I make our home. But it's cozy and far from anyone who could interfere with my heat. The past few I'd spent locked up here with everything I'd needed to attempt to ignore my biology. But with Ben gone, no one interested me, nor I them. After tucking Bennie in with Poe and Finn for the week, with Rose overseeing I retreated to the mountains to pout and try to make it without calling Kylo Ren.

Infuriating bastard.

Poe and Armitage tried to explain it to me. Ben was severely wounded yes, but once he'd come to, the FBI and Homeland Security had isolated him away from me to convince him to go back undercover to Snoke and work from the inside to help bring them down. He couldn't go to the main offices, too many people would remember Ben Solo and Snoke's obsession with Anakin Skywalker's grandson. Instead he'd joined one of the many street gangs that ran his various 'businesses'. It was dangerous work, and more than once he'd had to fight for his life. He'd killed people, all to make sure Bennie and I were off the First Order's radar. I wasn't sure how I felt about any of it.

He left me to save me?

Dr Holdo and I have run this subject around the block more times than not and I still cannot release the anger.

I do not see how leaving me, and allowing me to go through THINKING for FIVE YEARS that my soulmate was dead was saving my life, but Dr. Holdo says I don't have to embrace the entire concept at one time. I need to take small, achievable goals and work toward them as I can. My first goal is to not scream at Ben every time I see him. So far, I'm about fifty-fifty. Usually I say nothing because I'm afraid once I open my mouth I won't be able to stop what comes out.

Poe and Finn think I should be thankful that Ben survived and came back to me, but at the same time, Finn at least understands my conflicted feelings. He understands abandonment. The constant feeling of never being enough for anyone to want. It scars in a way that leaves you brittle and weary. I've spent years pretending to be strong, in charge, defiant. All I really want is someone to take the wheel for a little while, so that I can mourn my own losses. Everyone around me talks about how brave Ben was going undercover, but no one has said one word about what I've been through. 

When do I get to be the hero of my story?

By the time I reached the cabin, I could feel that achy cold feeling that preceded heat. I unloaded my groceries and suitcase and walked to the front door. Using my key, I immediately turned around to turn off the alarm. When I looked up again, there was a jet black Silencer Tiie pulling into the driveway.

'Kylo Ren' stepped out of the driver's door.

I frowned and tried to not screech at this stranger who inhabited my mate's body.

"Why are you here?"

His grin was almost infectious. "Because you know you've missed my chicken Parmesan. It's your favorite heat craving."

I sniffed and refused to let him in the door. "Not recently. My new favorite is nachos with extra cheese and tomatoes."

"I think I have all the ingredients for that as well. Rey, please. If you don't want me to touch you, I promise you can lock me downstairs, but we need to talk. Really talk. Don't shut me out, for Bennie's sake."

"That's a low blow, Rylo or whatever your name is today. You need to understand that no one, not even you, is allowed to use my child as any sort or weapon or ally. YOU don't have that right." I glared up at him, remembering how I fit just below his chin and swallowed hard. Focus!

"You don't have the right to keep my son away from me, Rey. I am his legal and biological father, even if it would be suicide for me to reveal that in public. But I don't want to fight. I just want to talk."

"Fine, talk."

"Inside, please Rey."

I stared at him, the bond between us slowly realigning after so long apart. I could feel his sincerity, and it made me madder. I didn't want sincerity, I wanted this stranger to be an ass. He needed to have a really good story, but how could I trust him? The man had been a lawyer for fuck's sake. A successful lawyer. AKA a professional liar.

"Ok Ben, I'll let you in if you can answer one question truthfully. And you know that I'll know if you lie. The bond always let us know when one lied to the other."

"Anything. Ask. I'm an open book to you."

"What have you done the past five years about your rut?"

I wish I had a picture of his face. He never thought I was ask that, but I had to know. I'd spent four, about to be five miserable weeks in fucking MOURNING and HEAT for a man who wasn't dead. But if he broke his vow to me to never cheat, then all bets were off, and I'd shoot his ass to keep away from him.

"I spent four of them alone and miserable with some fuck toy that Poe sent me through the FBI agents who were my handlers. I'm almost due for this years. I've always been on your schedule, since the moment we met. I love you Rey, and I always will. The thought of being with someone other that you during such an extremely emotional time makes me feel ill."

"What about that whore who was in our living room?"

"Ah, technically that's your second question, and I'm owed entrance to the cabin."

Of course he was right, but I really needed to know. As he passed by I could scent the emotions in him. He was cautious but happy. 

I could understand that.

Once in the living room, he took the love seat, while I claimed the chair. He frowned at that.

"What do I call you?" My tone was harsher than I meant. Self-defense.

"You can call me Ben in private, but I am legally Kylo Ren. Ben Solo died at the hands of Donald Mitaka. The first martyr in the war against the First Order and Snoke but unfortunately not the last. But I kept you and Bennie safe. That's what matters. I did it because I knew if I didn't stop Snoke and his bitch of a goddaughter I'd never sleep for worrying about what was coming behind me. Coming for you."

"Why did apparently EVERYONE know but me?"

"The only people who knew from the beginning are Kenobi and Quinn. Luke and Leia found out about a year ago when I got this lovely reminder on my face and they needed a plasma donor. Apparently we're a rare type."

"Well I knew that," I quipped. Then flushed from embarrassment as he grinned.

"I wanted so bad to be there for everything. I saw Bennie in the hospital about four hours after he was born. You were asleep, exhausted. Kenobi snuck me inside. The agents have been giving me pictures, videos and such all along the way. One of the first things Leia gave me when we reconnected was a copy of the video from the delivery room, you were so brave. It tore me apart every time you called my name. One hundred, thirty-seven times. I counted. It took both Kenobi and Quinn to stop me from leaving the safe house right then, but we were so close to toppling the whole damn house of cards. But I had to make sure Snoke was gone, that all the threats from the First Order were gone. Your safety was my highest priority."

Ben knelt in front of me, taking my hands in his. "Rey, I can't take back these past five years, but I can promise everything will be better from now on. How can I make this right? What can I do to show you that I've never stopped being your mate?"

I looked him square in the face. "I don't know. Part of my anger is from feeling abandoned. You know that's always been a trigger for me. The rest is from knowing we never really got to just be together and know each other. We went from hello to soulmates to mated to baby to abandonment. Can you see how this is a bit of an issue for me?"

Nodding, Ben took a step closer. "Rey, sweetheart, please let me touch you? I never wanted any of this shit to happen, but I made mistakes when I was younger, trusted the wrong people, and this was my opportunity to right the universe, you know? I feel free of all the bullshit from my past, really free, and ready to commit to you one hundred percent. I want us to be true mates again, I want to marry you and raise Bennie with you and make more babies and grow old and never forget to tell you at least five times a day how much I love you."

"I can't think right now, Ben. I'm too close to my heat."

Then I locked him out of the house.

******

BEN

I stood on the porch and pulled out my cell phone. Time for some moral support.

The first name in my list was Armitage. Luckily, he was gaming at Poe and Finn's apartment, so we got on speaker phone.

"She'll let you in once it gets too painful," Finn assured me. "That's been her constant complaint for years is the cramps are worse than it was giving birth to Bennie. You just need to be ready for her to blink."

Poe was of the opinion I should just burst through the door and reclaim what was mine. Watching Finn smack Poe was the highlight of the conversation. Armitage was on the only one with any sound advice.

"Make her forget why she's mad."

Sure enough, about three hours later, as I finished pulling weeds around the porch, Rey opened the door. The wave of scent that hit me was stronger than anytime I'd ever experienced, and the hackles on my neck rose as I growled at my panting mate.

"Alpha," she moaned. "I can't do this anymore. I'm so tired of being alone."

I caught her before she hit the ground. I could tell she was dehydrated, probably hadn't eaten anything either. Alpha brain kicked into gear, and I murmured into her ear as I carried her to the bathroom to draw a lukewarm bath. She was shivering yet her skin was fire to the touch. Nature had dealt Rey a vicious heat this time, and she was on the verge of delirious. I stripped us both and slid her carefully into the over-sized tub. Once I was sure she was set for a minute, I zipped to the kitchen, grabbing water bottles, some yogurt, and a box of raisins. Once back in the bathroom, I stepped into the tub, sliding Rey against my chest as I shook her gently.

"Come on Omega, time to drink and have a snack. Alpha's here now."

Her eyes were glassy with heat. She managed to get several large gulps of water down, along with a few bites of yogurt before I could feel the fever beginning to rise again. At that point, there was no time to get her dried and into a clean bed. Positioning her was like moving a rag doll, heat made her boneless and needy. As she slid down onto my cock, she whimpered my name and it was only when she screamed it again during her climax that I realized which name she'd used.

Kylo.

For the rest of the week, she alternated between Ben, Kylo, and Asshole. But she only punched me once. When we talked about that day. The day of the shooting, when everything changed.

I see Mitake raise that gun toward Rey every night in my dreams. Hear the 'thunk' of the bullet passing through my body into hers. I lost a kidney that day, but I could have lost so much more, and when I told her I would do it again to save her and our son, Rey wasn't impressed. Her left hook should be registered as a lethal weapon.

"If our family is threatened," she growled at me, "then we face it together. That's what people who love each other do, they work together. You took away my voice, and I'm not happy about that at all. Don't do it again."

As her need waned, we discussed where to go from here. 'Ben Solo' was a lawyer, Kylo Ren is an archaeology professor at Emory University but I was willing to be a house husband and take care of Bennie if that's what Rey wanted. She loved her job at Lockheed working with my uncle Chewie, and I wanted to encourage her to keep working. No matter what, I want Rey to be happy. I'm just ecstatic that she wants to be happy with me around.

When we returned to Atlanta, so much had changed. For the rest of the school year we lived in the guest house at my parents' house so Bennie could finish pre-K with his friends. Thank all that is holy the boy got Rey's sunny personality. The arrangement wasn't ideal, but at least I didn't have to go into the main house except every other Sunday for an afternoon of sports, and dinner. Plus it gave Rey and I time to find a house nearer to the college for our family. 

The circa 1950's craftsman cottage had been recently remodeled, and with a large flat fenced-in backyard and state of the art alarm system, the enemy would have a hard time approached much less entering the deceptive cottage. It was perfect and Bennie was thrilled that Mommy and Daddy were going to be together again.

For the second time, Rey and I embarked on our life together.


End file.
